Almost 120 000 NSFAS applications approved

Jan 24, 2017

The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has approved the funding applications of almost 120 000 university and Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) college students for the 2017 academic year.

According to the figures provided by NSFAS, by end of 18 January 2017, the scheme approved 15 349 applications for new students and 74 376 for returning students at the 21 country’s universities.

The scheme has also approved 28 530 applications for returning students at 18 TVET colleges.

“The numbers are not final and will keep increasing as we approve many more students on a daily basis,” the scheme said in a statement on Monday.

NSFAS said recently that it has already started communicating application results for the first phase and will continue to do so via SMS and email.

For those who submitted applications from 9 January 2017 (second phase), the outcome of applications will be communicated from 1 February 2017.

Students who are receiving social grants and have applied to NSFAS for financial assistance in 2017 will not be means tested like other applicants.

They will qualify to receive funding because they have already been means tested by the Department of Social Development.

According to the Department of Basic Education, more than 600 000 full-time learners registered to write the recent National Senior Certificate exams. Of these, 188 758 are social grant beneficiaries.